End of an error

— CPS chief ‘must go’ as two more Sun men cleared
— Meanwhile sex crime, violence, cyber fraud UP

BRITAIN’S top prosecutor Alison Saunders was urged to quit last night after her “spiteful” £30million inquiry into journalists finally collapsed.

It came after the last two senior Sun journalists to stand trial under Operation Elveden were cleared of wrongdoing over payments for stories.

Saunders’ decision to hound them through the courts was yesterday branded “a monumental error of judgment”.

Assistant Editor Chris Pharo, 46, and senior district reporter Jamie Pyatt, 51, walked free from the Old Bailey yesterday after a jury threw out the case against them.

Director of Public Prosecutions Saunders and Met Police chief Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe both presided over the inquiry which saw 29 journalists on national newspapers charged and acquitted.

Acquitted ... Pyatt and Pharo

The acquittals came as figures showed violence and sex crimes have rocketed and it also emerged there has been a surge in cyber fraud.

MPs demanded Saunders resign over the scandal, which has been described as a politically-motivated attack on the tabloid press.

Labour MP Simon Danczuk said: “I think she should resign immediately.

“There was no public interest in bringing these prosecutions. That’s been proven over and over again. Her position is now untenable. It’s outrageous how much public money has been wasted on Operation
Elveden, with the lives of so many journalists put on hold for so long.”

Chris and Jamie had languished on bail for nearly four years, a combined total of 2,789 days, before justice was finally done yesterday.

Both had their homes raided in dawn swoops of the kind usually reserved for hardened terrorists.

As they emerged from court, they spoke of their joy and blasted the Met Police probe, which boasted 80 detectives.

Chris said their nightmare extended way beyond him and Jamie. He said: “It has damaged our families, our friends and the true human cost to everybody in Operation Elveden is incalculable.”

The probe began in 2011, with Jamie the first to be arrested — and the very last to be exonerated. He said: “Finally the head of the Elveden dragon has been chopped off.”

After the jury returned its verdict, Nigel Rumfitt QC, for Chris, told the court: “This has been a monumental error of judgment by the Director of Public Prosecutions.”

Out of 54 charges put to journalists, only one led to a conviction, that of Anthony France — and his is subject to an appeal.

Ex-Scotland Yard commander John O’Connor branded Saunders a “political axewoman”.

He said: “The DPP lost all sense of proportion by pursuing these charges. Operation Elveden became a politically-motivated witch hunt.”

Chris and Jamie previously stood trial in Kingston last year, but the jury could not reach a verdict.
Saunders then made the decision to put them through a retrial.

The CPS wasted more than £2million hiring the nation’s top pitbull prosecutors in a desperate bid to convict innocent Sun staff.

They included Andrew Edis QC, now a high court judge, and Peter Wright who oversaw convictions of serial killer Harold Shipman and “Suffolk strangler” Stephen Wright.

Last night Saunders refused to comment.

But in a statement the CPS said: “The CPS is duty-bound to prosecute cases which provide a realistic prospect of conviction and are in the public interest.”

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YESTERDAY police recorded crime figures for the last year showed a 41 per cent rise in sex offences, to the highest level since comparable records began in 2002,

There was a 25 per cent rise in violence against the person crimes logged by forces. Homicide, which includes murder, was at its highest for four years.

Meanwhile, first official estimates suggested more than 20,000 fraud and cyber crimes take place every day in England and Wales.

Research found there were 5.1million incidents of fraud in the last year involving 3.8million victims.

DPP’s list of gaffes

By JONATHAN REILLY

THE acquittal is the latest in a string of disasters for Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders.

Mrs Saunders, 54, who earns £600,000 a year, refused to prosecute Lord Janner over 22 alleged sex crimes against children for health reasons.

Decision ... Lord Janner Nicholas Razzell

The decision was reversed in June, making her the first DPP to have a major judgment overturned.

In February she was forced to defend herself after pursuing a doctor accused of performing female genital mutilation on a young mum.

Dr Dhanuson Dharmasena was acquitted in less than 30 minutes after a trial.

Leading doctors and medical experts said it had been ludicrous to press ahead with the prosecution.

Earlier this year, Mrs Saunders was blasted for saying men needed to prove a woman consented to sex to avoid being charged with rape. She said women who could not remember if they consented to sex after a boozy night out should automatically report it to police.

She said: “I’m saying she should think about it and maybe talk to some support groups.

“If she thinks there may have been an offence she should certainly talk to the police.”

Her comments prompted claims men in such rape cases would “guilty until proven innocent”.

Keir Starmer

Witch-hunt ... Sir Keir Starmer

LABOUR MP Sir Keir Starmer was responsible for starting the witch-hunt against staff at The Sun.

The former DPP used laws developed in the 13th century to charge our reporters for doing their job but claimed recently he could not remember why he prosecuted them.

Some consider it was warped revenge on the paper for switching allegiance from Labour to the Conservatives in 2009.

The hypocrite now says there should be a “public interest” defence and more “legal protection” for journos.

Leveson’s law peril

THE 2009 MPs expenses scandal would never have been exposed under restrictions imposed by the Leveson Inquiry, a damning report says.

Authors of Leveson’s Illiberal Legacy said the legislation, to be enforced on the media next month, will end investigative journalism.

The report also found obstructions to freedom of expression. It calls for sections to be repealed.